Monday, September 10, 2012

Pakedge, a leading provider of networking gear for custom integrators, introduced at CEDIA Expo 2012 a brand new line of wireless access points that are geared to give maximum distance without sacrificing performance.

I can say from experience in my personal system that these access points are another evolution in the networking space by a company already known for its prowess in the market.

Xantech IR over IP﻿

Xantech launched the XtraNet line of IR products that work over Ethernet, allowing for routing and controlling of remote devices over a home network. It does all sorts of things, including giving you the ability to control using old-fashioned IR repeaters, without having to rely on double-plugged emitters.

Features The XtraNet XLIP200 is a basic IR input and output device that supports native IR I/O over wired networks, to which it interfaces via an RJ-45 connector, and is configured as an input by default. The XLIP400, configured by default as an output, adds support of up to 128 macros. These macros may be accessed via a web page from any computer, tablet, smartphone or similar smart device connected to the network. Alternatively, users may create personalized control pages for the iPhone or iPad using commercially available third party apps. The macros are configured as eight system-wide buttons plus four groups of 30 macro buttons that may be dedicated to specific devices…

Friday, September 07, 2012

Near Field Communication (NFC) was one of CE Pro's Top 5 Home Technologies to watch for 2012. Well, you can watch it at CEDIA Expo 2012, where Crestron has implemented it booth-wide via a new technology called airConnect.

I may be dating myself here, but remember back in 2007 when Bill Gates introduced Microsoft's answer to the digital home? The technology allowed for automatic personalization of the end user’s HVAC, lighting, artwork, and favorite TV channels via wireless communication from a pendant that he or she would wear to the Microsoft Quattro home server. The concept was visionary at the time—walk into a room in the digital home wearing the pendant and everything would automatically be adjusted to your personalized settings.

Now flash forward to 2009 CES with the debut of NFC. Designed with the idea that consumers in the future would not have to pay cash or even swipe an ATM debit card to…

Thursday, September 06, 2012

Savant Systems LLC has announced the introduction of Savant Lighting Control, transforming its LiteTouch products into a lighting control solution that can be used as part of a complete package within Savant's home automation and energy management ecosystem, or as a standalone lighting control system.

Savant Lighting Control will take advantage of the company's software-based system configuration, hardware devices and user interface options, giving integrators and designers versatile and scalable lighting control solutions, according to the company. Savant acquired LiteTouch in February 2012 and earlier this year debuted some new keypad designs inspired from the buyout.

Users will be able to activate lights via Savant's keypads as well as iOS and Mac apps including TrueControl and TrueImage Control. Savant Lighting Control can also be implemented as a standalone lighting solution, utilizing the same interoperability that LiteTouch has offered to third-party control vendors. Savant's backwards compatible hardware and software…

Friday, September 18, 2009

Many of us only spent a few days in Atlanta for CEDIA Expo 2009. It was the first time the show has been in Atlanta since 1997.

What did you think?

It was my first trip to Atlanta, and I entered with some preconceived notions that were mostly negative. I mean, CEDIA went out of its way to let people know security would be ramped up during the show. It’s not difficult to read between the lines.

But I liked Atlanta. It’s a cool city with nice people.

Whether or not it’s a good host city for CEDIA Expo 2009, well, that's a different story.

Pros

It’s a big city with plenty of restaurants

Security was everywhere

Friendly people

The aquarium and Coca Cola factory give attendees a reason to bring their family along

As the news about the bankruptcy spread on the show floor, most of the Nortek companies were not there to quell speculation or anxiety among its dealer base.

Companies like Elan, Sunfire, Homelogic and Linear chose not to have exhibits at this year's show. OmniMount and SpeakerCraft did have strong presences in Atlanta and probably were sidetracked a bit by having to spend time talking to dealers about it vs. showing off products.

I heard some competitors of Elan adding fuel to the fire by raising doubt about the future of the company, telling integrators they should drop the line despite assurances from Nortek that the